For as long as we can remember, Google has been the go-to site for searching.  They dominate search market share and their rivals have never really threatened their supremacy.  As Google attempted to take social market share from Facebook (Google+), Facebook is now looking to claim their stake in the search space.

Introducing Facebook Graph Search.

Facebook is launching a search engine that will compete with – but be very different from – Google search.  Facebook Graph Search works in an entirely unique way from Google.  Google works by indexing public information, but
Facebook Search will work by looking at the social graph of us and our friends.
If you search on Google for a dentist in Dallas, you’ll get similar results to anyone else who does the same search. Not so in Facebook.  That same search on Facebook will offer Dentist Facebook pages that your friends have liked. Read that again. It’s pretty powerful if you think about it. This could make a huge dent in service searches (doctor, landscaper, hair stylist, etc.) and imagine how review sites like Yelp and Angie’s List are feeling. In fact, Yelp’s stock went sharply down
after the news of Facebook’s search engine broke.

You can search for people, places, and things that aren’t constrained to a website.  You can see if your friends like a particular photo, restaurant, and much more.

How will this affect my Facebook business page?
  • You know who is looking for your product or service.  If they “like” you, their profiles will come up when doing a search for your brand or company.
  • “Likes” will be more important again.  The more “likes” you have, there’s a greater likelihood that your business page will show up often, such as when friends of your followers search for interests or pictures related to your page.
  • Graph Search can bring new, expected visitors to your site.  Someone may know your company as “XYZ Creative,” but if they search for “Ad agency in NYC” and you show up, they will unexpectedly come across your page.  Content is extra important now, as they will decide to stay or leave your page once it pops up on their Graph Search.
Facebook Graph Search is still in the testing phase, but will be a reality within a few weeks or months.  Do you think this feature will be beneficial for you and your business?
Photo Credit: techlicious.com